A majority of younger veterans said they feel uncomfortable when they are told “thank you for your service,” a new poll found.
Ahead of Veterans Day on Saturday, a survey found disparities between young military members and their older counterparts in how they prefer to be recognized for their service.
Among younger military members and veterans — age 18 to 29 — 70 percent said they feel uncomfortable or awkward when they are thanked for their service. Only 24 percent of older members, 65 years and up, say the same, the Endeavor Analytics and YouGov poll found.
“This data shows that military service members and our veterans want Americans to go beyond small talk to connect with them on a deeper level, including learning more about their service, honoring each veteran’s service in ways in which they feel comfortable talking about it,” Robert F. Whittle Jr., retired Army major general and United Services Automobile Association (USAA) chief of staff, said in a statement.
I’ve been in veteran circles, including qualifying for USAA benefits due to the service of family. I think he’s pretty accurate. Combat vets want a compassionate person to listen to their traumatic experiences, because most people use it as a thoughtless phrase to say, like saying thanks for someone opening a door. Most people saying it don’t want to know about the horrors they’ve seen. I’ve seen it in all of my family members and several friends that served in combat, they just want to be heard. The VA does what it can, but they need more funding to provide good therapists to vets.
The other vets that don’t like it usually didn’t serve in a combat role and don’t feel like they deserve it.